


Simplification

by celeste9



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Awkwardness, Dancing, F/M, First Kiss, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-17
Updated: 2017-02-17
Packaged: 2018-09-25 04:09:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,403
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9802037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/celeste9/pseuds/celeste9
Summary: Sometimes Rey wasn’t sure if she wished more that she had had meaningful social interaction on Jakku or that she was actually back on Jakku and didn’t need to do any of this.Well, maybe she didn’t actually wish for that last part. But it certainly would have been less embarrassing.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [anothersadsong](https://archiveofourown.org/users/anothersadsong/gifts).



> For the prompt, Poe/Rey, first kiss.

The pilots were throwing a party. Rey thought maybe it was someone’s birthday or anniversary or something but she wasn’t entirely sure; generally it just seemed like an excuse for them all to pile into the rec room with confiscated food and some moonshine.

Rey was sitting on the outskirts with Finn, watching everyone else, mostly. Too much noise and too big of a crowd tended to make her feel anxious so she felt more comfortable sticking to the fringes with Finn. She was pretty sure Finn wouldn’t have minded getting into the middle of it but he always wanted what Rey wanted first. It made this weird warm feeling spread through her chest.

She was watching Poe dance with Jess Pava, hips swinging, their hands all over each other. They were grinning and laughing and Rey had this absurd urge to push herself in between them though she didn’t know quite what she wanted to do after that.

Jess was nice. She had taught Rey how to fly an X-wing and she’d made sure Rey knew all the little things about life on the base that most everyone else hadn’t thought to tell her.

But as Rey watched Jess press against Poe and wind her arms around his neck, she felt a bit like she had on Jakku when she saw another scavenger with a particularly good haul out of the ship’s graveyard.

Rey knew what jealousy felt like. She just hadn’t expected to feel it here.

Besides, what was she even jealous _of?_ Rey didn’t know how to dance and she wasn’t particularly inclined to learn. She didn’t want to be out there in the midst of the throng of people. Though maybe if Poe wanted to come over here, that would be okay, that would -

“You’ve been glaring at Jess for five minutes,” Finn said.

“I have not.” Rey’s skin felt warm. She couldn’t believe she’d let herself get caught.

“Have too. I’m sure she’d let you cut in if you want. Think she’s more interested in dancing with Kaydel anyway.”

“Kaydel?” For some reason a bit of that jealous flame in Rey’s belly flickered out. 

“Yeah.” Finn nudged Rey in the side. “I’m sure Poe would be happy to dance with you. Actually, I know he would be.”

What did that mean? “I don’t want to dance with Poe.”

“Okay.” Finn sounded like he didn’t believe her. “He could teach you, if you’re worried about it. Poe’s a good teacher and he doesn’t judge.”

That was true, at least. Rey had made a fool of herself countless times since she’d arrived here and Poe had always been kind about it.

But.

“I don’t want to dance,” Rey said again. She didn’t. 

“But you have an irrational desire for Poe to not be dancing with anybody else.”

“Does she have to put her hands _there_?” Rey complained before she could stop herself. Frag.

“I think that means you like him,” Finn advised.

Rey scowled. “Don’t be stupid.”

Really. She didn’t like _Poe._ How ridiculous.

All right, okay, she liked him, but not in any way Finn was implying. Poe was her friend; he’d been kind to her and he made her laugh and he was nice to look at. Rey enjoyed spending time with him. She liked talking to him at night when she couldn’t sleep and he let her crash in his room. She liked working next to him in the hangar bay. She liked that he never took it easy on her when they flew together and that he always seemed just as excited when she beat him as when he beat her. Sometimes she got this fluttery feeling in her stomach when he was near but she didn’t want to… He was just… he was…

Well, shit.

“I hate when you’re right,” Rey muttered and Finn just laughed.

“Go on,” he said. “Jess won’t mind. You don’t even have to dance; tell Poe you just want to make out.”

“Asshole,” Rey said, shoving Finn’s shoulder while he laughed again. She stood up mostly to get away from him because he was going to be absolutely insufferable now.

“Make sure you tell him! He’s been dying to make out with you!”

Rey ignored him, her chin held high as she marched over to Poe. A couple of mechanics who had been dancing actually edged out of her way like they were mildly frightened.

Poe and Jess were still laughing like they were greatly enjoying each other’s company, hands clasped as Poe spun Jess away and then back in to his chest.

That spike of jealousy flared again. Rey thought of Jess wanting to dance with Kaydel and squashed it down.

“I’m cutting in,” she informed them, speaking loudly to be sure they could hear her over the music.

Jess was grinning at her in a way that reminded Rey a bit too much of Finn. “You’re welcome to him. I need a drink.” She made an elaborately exaggerated curtsey in Poe’s direction. “Thank you for the dance, Commander Dameron.”

Poe bowed just as formally. “My pleasure, Miss Pava.”

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Jess said, more like herself, giving them a wave.

“So, we’ve got free rein, then?” Poe called after her, and Jess made a rude hand gesture without stopping.

This time Rey didn’t think the dim sensation of envy she was feeling had anything to do with Poe. She was envious of how easily Jess interacted with everyone, her self-assurance, the way she knew what to say and do. Rey felt like she never knew what to say or do, always so awkward and ungainly, two steps behind while everyone else raced ahead. 

“Did you want to dance, Rey?” Poe asked, drawing Rey’s focus back to him. He looked so open and interested and so damn eager, like he always did, like it was his life’s dream to please whoever was in his company at that moment.

Rey’s mouth felt dry and she couldn’t remember why she had thought this was a good idea. Actually, she wasn’t sure she had ever thought it was a good idea. She glanced back towards where Finn was but he had left, probably having found someone of his own to dance with. Finn seemed to find it much easier to fit in than Rey ever did. 

Rey had hated being alone. But she didn’t quite know how to be together, either.

“Rey?” Poe prompted.

She realized she was just standing there like an idiot. She didn’t want to dance at all but she was afraid that Poe wouldn’t want what she did want. It had been stupid anyway. All she needed was Poe as her friend, like Finn. Everything else was too complicated.

“No,” was all Rey could make herself say. She turned her back to Poe and walked through the crowd again, this time intent on escaping. 

The problem was that Poe was calling after her, and judging by the way his voice never seemed to get any farther away, he was following her. Damn his persistence.

In the hall Rey whirled around to face him. “I said, no, I don’t want to dance with you!”

Seeming startled, Poe hesitated. “Okay. You don’t have to. But then… what did you want?”

“Nothing. Doesn’t matter.”

“It mattered enough for you to want it.”

“Maybe I changed my mind.”

“That’s fine, but… Rey. What’s bothering you?”

There it was. Poe’s Force-damned concern. He was so kriffing _nice_ all the time; it was tremendously irritating. Rey had a strange desire to see him angry, truly angry. She wondered what it would take, short of joining the First Order or doing something that endangered lives.

“Can you not?” she said.

His eyebrows drew together. Rey wished she found that less endearing than she did. “Can I not what?”

Rey waved her hand up and down and around in a vague attempt to encompass Poe. “Don’t you ever just get mad?”

“You want me to be mad at you?” Poe sounded even more confused than before.

“Kriff, just… just… Oh, fuck it,” Rey said, and kissed him.

Rey might be awkward and stand-offish but no one had ever accused her of timidity.

Poe’s confusion stretched into an uncertain stiffness as he stood there, Rey’s lips pressed to his, but reflex seemed to kick in because his hands came up to rest lightly on Rey’s hips and he returned the kiss with a gentle pressure. He smelled like that fancy bottle of product he put in his hair, the one he always kept on his desk, and his body was warm.

Rey had never kissed anyone before and she wasn’t entirely sure what to do, but she just stayed still, her hands curling into fists at Poe’s back, fingers twisted into his shirt, and she liked the way Poe’s lips felt against hers. She had had a vague thought that it might be sort of… wet, but Poe kissed her cautiously, mouth closed, and it was just enough to make the smallest tendril of heat form in her belly.

“Um,” Rey said, pulling back, her face feeling like it was overheating, “was that okay? I mean, I’m not sure how… and maybe you didn’t even want to, I just--”

Her words trailed off in a huff of breath as Poe pulled her back to him again. Their noses bumped together and Rey couldn’t help her slightly breathless laugh but then Poe was kissing her, and yeah, it was a little wet, actually, and a little clumsy, and she wasn’t sure if she was doing it right. But Poe’s hips felt nice pressed against hers and he tasted like the crummy moonshine they’d been drinking, sharp and faintly bitter but not unpleasant.

Somehow one of Rey’s hands had ended up in Poe’s hair and the other one up the back of his shirt so she carefully retrieved them, crossing her arms over her chest to hide her embarrassment. Poe’s mouth looked weirdly shiny and Rey was trying not to consider why that was.

“So…” Rey cleared her throat. “So you did want to do that, then?”

Thankfully, Poe didn’t seem put off by Rey’s truly horrifying awkwardness. “Should I demonstrate my willingness some more, just so you really get the idea?”

Rey wondered what it meant that she wanted to say yes. “I guess I can take your word for it.”

“I actually thought I’d been pretty obvious about wanting to do that for a while now.”

“What? Well, why didn’t you just do it?”

“Thought maybe you should get to be the one making the first move. No pressure.”

“Stars, Poe. That was a terrible idea.”

Poe scrubbed his hand through the hair at the back of his head. “Yeah, I recognize that. But, hey, all good in the end, right?” 

“Only because I panicked myself right onto your mouth!”

Kriff. Damn it. Kriff damn it. 

Except Poe started laughing and he was so genuinely, infectiously amused that Rey couldn’t help but laugh a little, too. The whole thing was kriffing ridiculous.

“Is it okay,” he said, “is it okay if I ask what you were actually trying to do? Because, I mean, I’m really happy with the whole panicking thing, but I’m curious now what your actual goal was.”

“Finn might’ve… indicated that you’d be into me.” Oh, _stars._ “Er, into this. With me. Shit.” Sometimes Rey wasn’t sure if she wished more that she had had meaningful social interaction on Jakku or that she was actually back on Jakku and didn’t need to do any of this.

Well, maybe she didn’t _actually_ wish for that last part. But it certainly would have been less embarrassing.

“So maybe I should buy him a drink,” Poe said, his smile warm. 

“But how come Finn knew that? Why didn’t I?” Was she really just that oblivious? Poe had said he’d thought he was being obvious. Apparently Rey had entirely missed all his signals. Then again, if he’d wanted to kiss her so much he should have been telling her that and not Finn. Would’ve been way simpler. 

“Okay, well, you see, there’s this time-honored tradition in relationships where you go talk to the friend of the person you like instead of said person to sort of, you know, test the waters. See what your chances are.”

“That seems unnecessarily complicated.”

“That’s because it is. But most of us aren’t gutsy enough to just throw ourselves out there and kiss the people we like. So, if you think about it, you’re actually ahead of the game.”

“I’m terrible at this, Poe.”

“So am I, so we’re even.” Poe tugged at Rey’s hands until they were clasped in his. “But really, Rey, I was only trying to… Is this what you want?”

“I thought that was my line,” Rey muttered, having difficulty meeting Poe’s focused gaze.

“Why don’t we do this,” Poe suggested. “We can go back inside and enjoy the party, and sort of… see where this goes? No dancing, if that’s not what you want. We can just talk. Would that be okay?”

Rey made herself look into Poe’s dark eyes. “Yeah. Yeah, I think that would be okay. It sounds nice.”

“Good.” Poe was smiling again and he slid his arm around Rey’s waist to guide her back into the rec room.

She liked the pressure of it, the pleasant weight and the warmth of his body. When they went back in, Poe didn’t lead her towards the thick of the crowd, towards the center where he generally spent his time, but towards the edges where it was quieter, like he knew without asking what would make Rey more comfortable.

Jess was dancing with Kaydel, closer and slower than the beat of the music, and Finn was over with some of Poe’s pilots, his hand on Iolo’s elbow. He grinned when he caught Rey’s eye, giving her a thumb’s up, and Rey was fairly sure her blush was less embarrassed than it was pleased.

“You know,” Poe said, leaning in so she could hear him better, “Beebee’s been trying to get this to happen for weeks. He’s incredibly overinvested in romance for a droid. Particularly when it’s concerning my love life.”

Rey laughed and slid her own arm around Poe’s waist, drawing them closer together. She thought maybe this could work after all. 

**_End_ **

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on Tumblr [here](http://serceleste.tumblr.com). :)


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